Xanadu Weyr - Meadow
A large, slightly rolling meadow is set high enough above the riverbank on both sides to avoid suffering from flooding, healthy ground cover and grass spreading out from either side of the dividing river. Scattered amongst the meadow are a variety of weyrs, each with a narrow path leading up to it from a main, winding road. Some are set under a few trees, while others sit by themselves. The meadow continues with gentle rolls and dips, grass tall and short waving in the slightest of breezes, and eventually those hills grow higher and steeper, ending in a large rige that provides a fine view of that meadow and the rest of the Weyr, gazing out over the multicolored roofs of the houses and the cliff that holds the caverns.
Runner stables with the paddock beyond are to the south beyond the meadow weyrs, and a smithy and a woodcraft shop are settled closer in towards the path to the clearing. Trees border the northern side of the meadow, and more of those low, rolling hills can be seen to the northwest. A road passes through the meadow, coming from the east and used by traders and crafters alike. Wagons laden with felled trees from the forests or ore from the mountains are hauled by burden beast up the road through the meadow, over the bridge spanning the river to be processed in the appropriate workshops.
It's spring, when the snow has given way to warmth and barren trees bloom with life once more; Risali finds herself in the meadow on a day like today, at the top of the hill that overlooks weyrs, and rivers, and trees and rolling hilltops alike. Leirith is beside her, curled in prime dragon-loaf position with her head resting on the ground and pressed into Risali's thigh. The goldling is applying scritches along eye-ridges and head knobs, paying close attention to where the leathers protecting her eyes make her skin itch regardless of oil applied. "They'll come off soon," Risali reassures the gold, though her attention seems to be on the book open across her lap, studying for those damn tests. « Then I will be able to see! And we will go to the Fort, and the Half Moon, and the Monaco, and the Ierne! » Leirith keeps going, but her words are much less important than the fact that the little queen, as she so often is, is projecting the throbbing bass of her voice as far as it will reach, without heeding who is on the receiving end.
Walking in from the direction of the weyr, with Azrith as her large blue shadow, Zaria is striding towards Risali and Leirith, a little scrap clutched in her hand. The blue's eyes are mostly blue and green, but they whirl in a slightly worried manner. His nose doesn't stray far from her hand, offering his support by his proximity. Walking up to the goldling and her lifemate, she hold up her hand clenching the scrap and crosses her arms across her chest, standing over the other weyrling and not looking like she has any intention of sitting down. "You wanted to talk." she says in a tone that is very measured and even, but it really comes off cold. Azrith cheeps hoarsely in the direction of his golden sister «I cannot wait to see more of this planet as well.».
Zaria's voice draws Risali's head up when the approach of weyrling and her blue does not, hand against Leirith's maw going still as grey eyes trail up and - oh. Risali's book is closed as the Half Moonian-turned-Xanaduian studies Zaria's face and her brows furrow in confusion. "I'm trying to understand," she says softly, and it's a testament to the changes that Leirith has conjured up that Risali is not giving way to her temper and letting it speak for her instead, "what I did to earn your ire." A pause, and then even softer, "It seems like you are the one who wants to talk." Leirith, of course, reaches back out to Azrith, delight and unencumbered joy that pulsates in too much noise as she shares with her brother the images of the Other Places older dragons shared with her. « We will go together, you and me! And Garouth. And maybe Jaicoureth too. Okay we will just all go. Mine is from this one. » And she shares with him Risali's memory of Half Moon Bay, eager to do so.
Sighing deeply and pinching the bridge of her nose, Zaria seems to be pondering what to say next. A couple deep breaths bide her time as Azrith settles down sphynx-like, with his paws outstretched and wings folded neatly against his back. «Mine is from far away too.» he send a picture of Black Rock Hold to Leirith. «We will be going there to visit her clutchmates when I am old enough. I am told there are many.» He says, his normal silken smooth voice a little rough around the edges as he turns a worried eye towards his 'mate. Zaria finally speaks up with a shrug and tries to brush it off. "It's not you, it's my own issue really. I'm trying to deal with it." she says with the voice of someone not really convinced of their own words.
Leirith digests the information, inspecting the pictures with vibrant curiosity and filing them away within her own mind. « Where is this? » she asks, and then the drums pick up at the mention of clutchmates. « Mine has those too! Though few. » Risali's attention is glued to Zaria, watching with a wary kind of tepidness as the blue-y sighs, pinches the bridge of her nose, and finally speaks. "Okay," Risali finally breathes, on an exhale of breath she didn't realize she was holding. Prying has never been in the goldling's nature, and so grey eyes turn back onto Leirith as fingers once more apply themselves to itchy hide. She's silent for maybe a moment too long, and when she speaks again there's no hint of timid meekness or wary resignation. It's Risali's usual strength behind the words, even if it's offset by her sudden refusal to meet Zaria's gaze. "If you don't want to talk about it, Zaria, then don't. I will be here, if you change your mind." A brief pause, stilling her fingers once more as Risa's eyes flicker back to the other 'rider and - "Though I cannot fix anything if you don't tell me what it is that I've broken. And you… avoiding me isn't going to work." And oh yeah, that was agitation in her tone, even if it's subtle in its coming.
"I fell in love with you ok?!?!" Zaria blurts out with so little warning that even Azrith gasps and snaps his head back to look at his lifemate. So now that the feline's out of the bag, Zar might as well keep talking. "So now you know. I feel for you and then you impressed a gold and me a blue, and you have bronzeriders flocking to you and that's fine. You told me when we first met you weren't into girls. Which is why this isn't your problem. I fell for you knowing it was fruitless. So if I can just get over you, I need to do so soon, because these last few months since the Hatching has just been getting worse." She shrugs her shoulders, and then goes on some more, because it seems as if Risa had broken the dam on Zaria's repressed thoughts and now the goldling is rewarded with them being regurgitated verbally in her direction. "And I didn't want to say something cause I know what happens when I tell someone about my feelings without them being returned, and I had to leave my home the last time that happened." Pause for greatest dramatic effect, "And this was just starting to feel like home, and I don't want to lose that." Her face is red and her eyes are flashing as she finally stops speaking and braces herself for the reaction that is surely coming.
It's not only Azrith who is taken back by the outburst; Risali's jerking backwards as if she's been struck, grey eyes wide on Zaria as her brain tries to reformulate the words unleashed and the implication of feelings behind them. Before she can even open her mouth to reply, the bluerider is speaking again, and Risali's lips close tightly, smartly, grey eyes holding fast to Zaria's as the woman continues, unrelenting. Leirith's own surprise comes on a muted note of throbbing bass for her brother. « Mine loves yours too! Why is yours so upset about love? » She still has yet to reach that level of maturity that allows her to sort and compartmentalize the different kinds of love there are within the world, but she has a grasp on friendship, and assumes that every feel-good emotion associated with others is love. She will learn. When Zaria is done, Risali remains still, no hint of her thoughts to be read on her face until finally, finally, she moves. It starts with an exhale as Risali drops her gaze to her sightless dragon, and then she pushes herself to her feet and moves to stand before Zaria. One, two, three, and while Risali does not pull Zaria in, she opens her arms to offer a hug if she will accept. "Is that all?" she asks, and while it may seem like she is diminishing the importance of Zaria's feelings, she's really communicating that this will not come between them. She may not necessarily reciprocate the emotions, but it doesn't reduce her adoration of Zaria. "I'm sorry things aren't different, Zaria, but I can't imagine this being home for either of us without you here." A bit, and then with more humor in her tone, "And I do not have bronzeriders flocking to me. D'lei is my friend." A very, very close friend. But a friend.
Azrith rolls his eyes at his 'mate and then turns to Leirith, «It is silly, she has been making herself miserable while feeling good things towards your rider. I tried to talk her out of being so emotional, but she keeps saying I'm too young to understand.» and even his mindvoice resonates a mental eyeroll. Zaria reaches up and runs her finges over her lower eyelids, cause they're itchy, totally not because they just welled up with tears. Taking another deep, deliberate breath, she manages to crack a smile at Risali for the first time in a while. "Well I don't know, you were awful clingy on him at the hunting lesson. I'm sorry. I guess I'm still not getting the whole courting….thing." she looks genuinely troubled. "I better get it soon, cause this one," surepticious head tilt in her blue's direction. "is already getting worked up whenever a green goes proddy in here, so I won't doubt he will be chasing them soon enough. And I don't know if my first time should be because of a flight. I wanna be at least satisfactory you know." Wow, sharing everything really is catharic and Zaria looks as if a weight has been lifted off her shoulders.
"Don't you cry, you're going to make me cry," Risali manages on a breathy laugh, but it's too late. She's already crying (even if she pretends like her own tears are something UNIMPORTANT, unworthy of acknowledgement outside of a press to the corner of her eyes). And then in she goes, HUGGING ZARIA WHETHER SHE WANTS IT OR NOT. And if Zaria allows, Risali holds tight to her, speaking with chin on her shoulder. Either way, she's telling her, "Because he is important to me, like you are important to me. But he's bigger, and stupid," and less likely to break under her violent version of affection. Risali steps back with another smile, and Leirith stands with an upbeat, « All the Big dragons keep telling me the same thing! But just you wait. One day I will be bigger than all of them. And then I will tell them they are too little to understand. » YOUNG, LITTLE. WHATEVER. Zaria plows forward right into talks of flights and preparedness and being good at what you do and - yep. She broke Risa. Then goldling is blushing, honest to Faranth blushing, and in true Risali fashion, she's determined not to look at Zaria as she gathers her book and looks at the sky and oh that weyr over there is particularly eye-catching. One, two three, and, "I understand," comes on clipped tones. But it's not anger, it's… embarrassment? She doesn't elaborate, just catches Zaria by the upper arm and gives her a gentle little push-pull in the direction of not here and not facing her. "I'm sure you will be great in bed. Now shut up, Zaria, and let's go back. I'm hungry." And whether Zaria follows or not, Risali is leading Leirith away. « What can she do great in bed, minion? Whatever it is, we should probably learn how to do it better! » Faranth. If only Risali could walk faster.